DELMARVA -Â More than 85,000 homes and businesses are without power Monday morning as crews work to restore service following a powerful winter storm.
Delaware Electric Cooperative reported about 54,000 members without electricity as of 11:30 a.m. Monday. Restoration efforts resumed after being temporarily paused overnight due to dangerous conditions.
"This was a historic storm for our Co-op and DEC’s rural service territory experienced the most severe impacts associated with the blizzard," a post read. "This is now the second worst storm our Co-op has faced, with only the 1994 ice storm being more severe."
The co-op said snow and strong winds were still impacting the area, but the worst of the storm was winding down. Crews were deployed Monday morning to assess damage, including downed trees and damaged equipment. Line workers, along with contract utility and tree-trimming crews, are expected to begin full restoration efforts by mid-morning.
Ten additional crews from Virginia are en route to assist.
Due to the scale of the outages, full restoration could take several days. The co-op said it cannot yet provide estimated restoration times and will prioritize repairs affecting the largest number of homes first.
Delmarva Power reported 31,613 customers without electricity. The company said crews are working to safely restore service and urged residents to stay clear of downed power lines.
Customers can report outages or downed lines by calling 1-800-898-8042, visiting Delmarva Power’s website or using the company’s mobile app.